Heartsight on Amazon Reviews

This novel was so beautifully written. The relationships between the characters did tug at my heartstrings. Kay uses all five senses when she writes. You feel as though you are there watching the whole story take place- I couldn’t put it down- and I was sad when it ended.

Came across this story by chance and I am so glad I did. My nephew is Down’s Syndrome and is a loving adult now. Anyone who has come into a lifestyle like that will truly love this story. Kudos to Ms. Springsteen for a tender and intelligent love story. I will certainly read more from this author & ASTRAEA PUBLISHING.

Capt. Dan Conway, USMC (almost retired) after 4 years of rehab and “procedures” to restore his sight after being blinded on the wrong side of an IED, returns home to the beach he grew up on in North Carolina to just live and try to decide on a future path if there is one.

Trish Evers, single mom, divorced from the “jerk of the century” is busy clearing out the former B&B of her late grandmother a few houses away from Dan’s. Trishs’ 6 year old, Bella, is an adorable mentally challanged child who is adventurous and enjoying the very nearby beach. Bella’s attraction to the beach mixed with overwhelmed mom’s exhaustion find mom dozing and adventurous Bella on her way to the beach alone.

Panicked mom starts searching for her daughter who has found Dan on the beach and silently just sits down with him and takes his hand. Dan tries chatting with the silent child and decides to just wait for an anxious parent to find them. It takes several hours before he hears the panicked voice of a mom calling “Bella!”. After Dan returns her shout Trish, of course, feels like “mom of the year” and Dan feels somewhat deserted after thanks from Trish and their ensuing departure. Seems Dan was quite taken with the quiet little one just sitting and holding his hand in the early morning sun.

Repeated encounters between Dan and Bella have mom somewhat knowing where to look for Bella who seems to have become very adept at scurrying away from her to adopt Dan (the MOST patient man ever)as her full-time buddy.

This is a wonderfully written, sweet, shelf keeper for me. Although all the main characters are sympathetic – they are also very strong in their intentions to be responsible to both themselves and Bella. Don’t miss this wonderful, heartfelt story. The adventure depicted in the last half of the book will have you pulling for Dan, Trish and Bella. We later find out the sacrifice Dan may have made during that last “mission”. Author Kay Springsteen writes in a very coherent style and really brings the poignancy of Dan, Bella and Trishs’ lives home to the reader. I couldn’t help the occasional tear for each of their personal obstacles.

Single mom Trish Evers has a lot on her plate, from cleaning out her grandmother’s B&B to dealing with her ex-husband and his custody issues to the mysterious ex-Marine neighbor and add in her mentally challenged daughter, Isabella. Her summer on the North Carolina beach will be life turning point in her life, physically and emotionally. With the help of mysterious neighbor, Dan Conway, Trish learns of true, unconditional love.

Over the weeks, Trish and Dan develop the sweetest romance ever witnessed. His caring and understanding of Bella’s condition proves he has great compassion. Trish and Dan’s relationship evolves from friendship to admiration to respect and love. Both want what’s best for Bella and her development and stability.

When her ex-husband, who’s fighting her for custody of their daughter, shows up unannounced, Trish has to stand firm her Bella’s well-being. In preparations of leaving the beach side residence with a pending hurricane coming, Bella disappears. During the ordeal, Trish relies on Dan, who is blind due to an IED explosion overseas (happened during a scene involving Trish’s ex’s company) to find Bella. Dan, who is still dealing with some issues from his blindness and Marine life, must set aside his emotions and troubles to find Bella.

Springsteen creates three of the most memorable characters in this novel. From Dan and Isabella’s connection to Dan and Trish’s budding romance, Springsteen produces passion in her dialogue, laughter in the moments shared between Dan and Trish and unconditional love for all three.

I highly recommend this novel to everyone. The sweet romance was addictive and once I started reading, I could NOT stop. Springsteen has a glowing future in the publishing world of romance.

Dan Conyers is blind. He carries physical and emotional scars, but he’s anything but helpless. This ex-military man was of the hottest heroes I’ve met in a long time. Kudos to the author for taking her leading man in a brand new direction.

I normally review Christian fiction, and probably wouldn’t have read this if I had known it didn’t really fit that category, but I’m glad I gave it a chance. Heartsight is a sweet/contemporary romance and a quick read. Springsteen crafted characters that wormed their way into my heart almost immediately.

She did a particularly great job writing the slime ball ex-husband. He made a fantastic antagonist, someone I loved hating.

I expected Heartsight to be a fast read, but its in-depth emotion made me slow down to savor the tugging-the-heartstrings story line. Dan Conway, a blinded Marine, meets Trish Evers and her Down Syndrome child, Bella, and forms a strong bond of friendship. Trish struggles with loss at many levels, especially when her ex-husband sues for custody of their child. The gripping climax at the lighthouse kept me turning pages as well, delivering a satisfying twist. Kudos to Kay Springsteen!

***

5.0 out of 5 stars Heartsight is Full of Insight and Great Writing,March 17, 2011

Kay Springsteen delivers a stirring love story full of well-crafted language, vivid imagery, and hope in Heartsight.

Heartsight is the story of Trish, the now single mother of Bella, a delightfully drawn girl with Down Syndrome. Although Bella’s father couldn’t handle her different needs, she is the center of her mother’s life. She quickly captures the heart of Dan, a veteran Marine who was blinded in Afghanistan and has come to the remote Carolina beach to escape. The tension builds nicely as Dan and Trish try to understand the meaning of their feelings for each other, and Bella’s father is reintroduced as an uncaring villain who could tear their world apart. But Mother Nature herself provides the culmination of the story in the form of a hurricane the characters must walk directly through in a truly life-and-death chapter. Masterfully switching between the perspectives of the two lovers, Kay Springsteen shows herself to be an experienced writer who cares as much about language as she does about her characters and her happy ending. Using Dan’s “handicap” as a new way of experiencing the world, Springsteen creates sensory-intense scenes filled with perfumes, sounds, and textures the reader will not soon forget.

Heartsight doesn’t hit you over the head with prescriptive morals and the characters have their doubts about the existence of God. Their lives have given them a realistic degree of uncertainty that makes it all the more rewarding when they make the final decisions of the book. While never crossing the bounds of propriety, the sensual scenes evoke the mixture of heartfelt longing and hesitation in the characters.

It’s not often that people with less than perfect physical abilities end up as the heros or heroines in romance stories, but Dan is a perfectly believeable character worthy of love and respect, despite his blindness. Kay Springsteen did a wonderful job of bringing these characters to life, and telling their story in a sensitive, thought provoking manner. I’ve always been a romantic, and this is a very satisfying story. I’m looking forward to seeing more from this author.

I don’t read a lot of romance, much less sweet romance. But this is a wonderful book and I enjoyed it tremendously. It’s intelligent and well-written, with smooth writing that flows and a plotline that’s solid. And the characters are truly believable. Kay Springsteen is a writer to watch.